wavered

Wavered is the past tense and past participle of the verb waver. In standard usage, it describes either a hesitation or indecision, or a physical or metaphorical movement that is unsteady or uncertain.

As a sense related to decision, wavered means to vacillate between options or courses of action, often reflecting a lack of decisive commitment. It can describe changes in beliefs, opinions, or resolve. In a physical sense, wavered can describe something that sways, trembles, or flickers, such as a flame or light. In both uses, the sense involves instability, doubt, or inconsistency.

Usage notes emphasize that wavered is commonly followed by between, among, or in phrases expressing hesitation, such as “wavered between two choices” or “her faith wavered after the controversy.” It can appear in narrative, historical, or analytical writing to convey a moment of doubt or fluctuation, as well as in descriptive passages about objects affected by wind or movement.

Etymology is uncertain; the form derives from Middle English waveren, and it evolved into the modern verb waver and its past tense wavered. Related terms include vacillate, hesitate, falter, and quiver, which share similar nuances of uncertainty or instability.

See also: vacillate, hesitate, falter, and quiver.